remember a few years ago i had mentioned on the thread re imperatives generate solutions?
Life is dynamic so we must be nimble and avoid over-attachment to a script. On that note, China will soon surpass Japan as Alaska'a major export destination. I knew you needed minerals, but I'm astonished to see you're on the verge of out-competing Japan for our fish! :0)
Seafood, minerals lead record year for exports from Alaska
alaskajournal.com
By Sean Manget
Alaska Journal of Commerce
Web posted Friday, May 20, 2011
Last year was a record-breaking year for international exports, with $4.2 billion worth of minerals, seafood and other goods being sold to other countries, according to Gov. Sean Parnell.
The state's exports grew by 26.95 percent over 2009, while overall U.S. exports grew by 20.97 percent.
On a per capita level, Alaska ranks in the top 10 exporting states, the release said.
While Japan is still Alaska's biggest international trading partner, China's growth as an export partner has driven a lot of this upward momentum, said Greg Wolf, executive director of World Trade Center Alaska.
"Minerals and China were the main drivers," Wolf said. "Not only last year, but in the last 10 years, the headline story has been the growth of Alaskan exports to China."
In 2000, China received $103 million worth of exports, according to data provided by World Trade Center Alaska. That number has steadily crept upward year-over-year, reaching $733 million in 2008.
The following year, the number dropped to $586 million, but last year, the number skyrocketed, reaching $923 million.
"I've been in this business 23 years, and never have we seen a market grow this rapidly," Wolf said.
China is a large emerging market, Wolf said, one that needs natural resources to maintain its massive economic growth. Alaska's economy is geared toward natural resource extraction, and many of its major exports – seafood, minerals, precious metals and lumber among others – are natural resources.
"So we have what they need, we have what they want," Wolf said.
And the location of the state — along the Pacific Rim — makes Alaska a state positioned ideally to supply growing Asian countries.
"China has a lot of natural resources, but not all of them are close to their population centers. That's their challenge," said Patricia Eckert, a trade specialist with the Alaska Office of International Trade.
Beyond minerals, China also imported a lot of seafood: $516.9 million-worth of seafood in 2010, second only to Japan, which imported $523.4 million.
"China has been steadily growing in importance in Alaska's seafood exports and in 2010 was up 23.1 percent," the release said.
But not all of the seafood imported by China is actually consumed there, Wolf said. A portion of it is shipped to China, processed and then exported again to other countries, he said.
Individual markets
Seafood was still the leading export at $1.821 billion, or 44 percent of the total for the state. Mineral ores were a close second at $1.339 billion, or 32 percent. Energy made up $418 million, or 10 percent, and precious metals came in at $213 million, or 5 percent.
Forest products came in at $117 million, or 3 percent, with other categories, including aircraft, fish meal and machinery, seeing smaller percentages. An "other" category saw $98 million, or 3 percent.
The value of precious metal exports grew 39.9 percent, the release said, with gold being the primary product in that category. Of the $213.4 million exported in 2010, $209.3 million went to Switzerland and $3.7 million went to Canada.
Energy exports did well too. The category includes liquefied natural gas, refined petroleum products and coal. It reached $418.3 million last year, a 27.4 percent increase over the previous year, according to the release.
The figures in the state's report came from the U.S. Census Bureau, and the numbers don't reflect resources first transported to and warehoused in other U.S. states before export, the release said.
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